The Good, The Bad, & The...CUTE!

We'll start with the...CUTE...because it's the easiest and, well, THE CUTEST!  The other day my father sent me this photo of my niece.  Apparently, she has messy hair and doesn't care!

Now...for a little bit of the...GOOD!  I found this a while back and it is darn tasty!  Pumpkin Spice Peanut Butter made with REAL Pumpkin!  I have a few spoonsful for a snack on occasion!

And for another 'nut butter' I am feeling conflicted about this one...while it smells and tastes WONDERFUL the texture is a little hard to deal with!  Sure...I expected the oil to be on top and that I would have to stir but OMG it was SO DRY on the nut butter part that I got oil all over me and couldn't really stir it at all!  YIKES!

The last time I saw this brand I had the spicy queso (I think) and it was ok but really thin and runny.  THIS ONE was MUCH BETTER!  I liked the consistency and the flavor better than the first one!

For the next product...I guess I aimed a little too high with this one.  Perhaps my expectations were too over the top but I have to say I really didn't care for this product.  The noodles were very gummy and a weird slimy texture that didn't jive with my pallet.  Sorry, folks!

This, however, was AMAZING!  The flavor was great and the texture was right on, too!  BUT...locally, speaking, was WAY TOO EXPENSIVE!  I had to try it just once but at $7.99 I can't justify it...no matter how yummy!  Knock 2 to 3 bucks off and I will consider it!

I've had this one other time before but when I found it again I had to grab it not only because I was out of vegan cheese but because it was on sale and I had a craving!

This was the first time I had come across this brand of hummus so I knew I had to try it and was glad I did!  It was great!  And the price was right, too!  I'm looking forward to trying to find it again and trying another flavor!

I did find the new or at least the new-to-me Mexican Classic Blend of Daiya Shreds and I enjoyed them!  YAY!

This was a bit more than I wanted to spend but I rarely find Engine 2 brand items and knew I wouldn't be back to that location for MONTHS.  I gobbled it up rather quickly to say the least!

I tried the Bootleg Bucha Apple Spice and it was pretty good.  Another flavor I had right around that time was a HOPS one and I really liked that one, too!  One of these days I hope to visit a Buffalo Based Booch Place...maybe even Bootleg!  Time will tell!

New-To-Me Vegan Finds & Booch Results!

BOOCH!

Here is some of the finished product from the 1st batch of Kombucha that my Dad and I did.  We just went with the 1st brew and flavored with slices of oranges in the middle one and whole blueberries on the two on the left.  The one on the right is my Dad's experiment with ginger and cinnamon.  The blueberry was ok...next time I think I will blend the blueberries and then add it to the booch.  Altho I haven't finished the orange one (I have only sipped at little) I am totally LOVING the orange one!  We had to pitch one of the smaller batches due to mold but the large 2 quart and a smaller mason jar worked well...we even grew 2 baby SCOBY'S!  We started another small batch and in about a week and a half or so I want to try for the 2nd brew and carbonation!

I waited for as long as I could but had to break down and go shopping the weekend before last.  I stopped at Whole Foods Co-Op in Erie and they had a bunch of new products and a slew of sales...FIGURES...I didn't have a lot of money to go on a spree...but I did find some new-to-me items including these bagels!

And Miyoko's!  I think it was $2 off!  I know I have had some of her other vegan cheese - like the pub cheeses - and flavored cream cheeses - but this might have been the first time I have tried the 'straight up' plain vegan cream cheese.  And let me tell you...I LOVED IT!

Target in Erie expanded their vegan offerings, too, including a pumped up Sweet Earth section!  I already ate these Aloha BBQ Quesadillas.  They were ok but I don't think I would buy them again unless they were on sale.  They really didn't look anything like the photo.  The vegan cheese was near non-existent, I couldn't really taste the pineapple either.  They didn't taste bad but I I was thinking they would have layer upon layer of flavor but they really didn't.  They are good if you are in a hurry, however.

Another Sweet Earth meal I found was this.  Again...if you can find them on sale they are worth a taste.  With this I did appreciate that the cauliflower was actually roasted.  It was literally a little bit of mac with cauliflower on top.  There wasn't much vegan cheese sauce at all.  Luckily I had some of my Vegan Alfredo left over from a previous meal that I added on top and mixed it.  The flavor was good but it really could use more sauce!

Check these 'bad boys' out!  Daiya came out with some vegan yogurts.  But not just ANY vegan yogurt...CRUMBLE Yogurts!  As I type this I am eating the Key Lime one now and the taste is certainly a flavor EXPLOSION!  This Key Lime is right up there with the Lemon Cashewgurt for me - and that is saying a lot!

I haven't tried this one yet but if it's anything like the Key Lime one I know I will be a fan!  These are NICELY done.  Word to the wise...be sure to stir these well!  They are VERY thick!  That in itself puts it in the WIN category for me because many of the vegan yogurts I have had up to this point have been runny and/or thin.  

And finally, Kite Hill Ricotta!  It's the first time I have seen it locally and that was at my local Tops.  However, it was EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE, but I felt like I had to buy some to support the addition of a new product at that store so I did.  Of course, I really enjoyed it and can't wait to get more, so I hope they have it on sale VERY SOON!

How To Catch Up On The Last 3 (Or More) Months?

I guess the BEST way is to just jump in, eh?

Yeah!  It's been WAY TOO LONG since my last post!  There has been a LOT going on and I really hope to share as much as I can with you!  I thought the best way to do it is in screenshots of 6 and go from there!  So with this first set of 6 photo shown above you can see that I have been trying my green thumb at more plants.  My co-worker has really been getting me into it.  The problem is...I can't keep up with buy more and more dirt and potting soil for the ones we are obtaining!

I was able to get my hair done and I have to get it done again soon!  I'm so horrible about being consistent with that!  YIKES!

Cricket is still doing well.  Riley and Charlie are aging by the day!  I have really seen a rapid change in both of them this past year.  Charlie is 19 and Riley is 18.

I have been able to locate some great new and new-to-me vegan items over the last several months in our travels!  I also put in an order online at some point, too!  This Daiya wasn't available to me locally with the 4 cheese style but I was able to find it online!

SWIRLS!  These Vegan Swirls receive a HUGE two thumbs up from me!  I absolutely LOVED them!  I can't wait to find them again!  She's Swiss Cheese I bought online, too, and whereas it wasn't the best vegan cheese slices I have ever had I was able to get them at a low price so I was happy I was able to try them on the cheap!  The Foodies Frittata was ok, too!  Very filling!  Again...found that online over at Vegan Essentials.  Same with the French Bistro product.  I have to fess up and say I wasn't a fan of that product but was super excited to try and was stoked it was one of the 'overseas' vegan products I was able to get my hands on!  The Mustaches were cute and cheesy but really small and easy to eat in one sitting!

We did take a trip to Indiana a while back - more on that in the near future!  

I have been finding some great random vegan deals at our new local Ollie's, too!  Annie's was on sale not too long ago!  There was another Vegan Mac I grabbed from Vegan Essentials that was pretty good and from Germany (I think).  And some more office plants!

Here are some Amy's Vegan Cheese Pizza Snacks that I finally found and enjoyed! 

And the other 5 photos are from Letchworth State Park!  We finally visited it this past fall!  I can't believe I had never been there before now!  We hope to go back in the spring or summer, too!  I really liked the visit!

Our mall is being ripped apart and the guys working on the building were going to trash all of the plants so my co-worker and I grabbed a bunch and tried to save them and propagate them.  Some are working well and others aren't.  

More pics of Cricket and Riley!

In one of our Ohio trips I was able to visit Mustard Seed Market again and found more VioLife Vegan Cheeses which I really like!  And our local Tops has Enjoy Life Cookies!  YAY!

LOTS more on tap!  Just need to take it a little at a time!  Hope you haven't given up on me!

3 New-To-Me Daiya Products & A44 Movie

Just a quick post today because I seemed to be running out of time again!  YIKES! 

Last week The Vegan Zombie passed his Kickstarter goal of $80,000 to start producing his VEGAN Sci-Fi Movie A44.  I donated a very little bit to the campaign on the last day!  Can't wait to hear about the progress!

I received my shipment from Vegan Essentials and over the next couple of weeks will be sharing with you some of the things I ordered. 

Today I have 3 Daiya items that were in that shipment, actually. 

First up is this 4 Cheese Style with Herbs Cheezy Mac.  Here, locally, I am able to get the 'cheese' packets and in Lakewood they sometimes have the other 2 macs.  I have been able to try them and they are ok but it's not something I buy a lot.  This was also ok...again...not something I would buy weekly...or even monthly!  But it's good for a treat or on occasion.  I did like the addition of the herbs to the mix.  The pasta noodles were a little strange but didn't taste bad.  Just different, really.

The other two items are these Cheeze Sticks.  I bought one of each as you can see.  The Cheddar Style and the Moz Style. 

So far I have eaten both of them as a snack.  Convenient for on the go.  I think they have more flavor than the block style cheeses.  I assumed they used the same base as their blocks and just cut it different but Daiya responded on my IG photo saying that it's their own recipe blend specifically for the sticks.  Interesting.

I have also tried these Cheddar sticks finely chopped and tossed and melted in with regular pasta noodles, almond milk, Earth Balance, and a bit of nooch.  It turned out pretty good for just throwing everything in.  I will say that the flavor of it melted is more of a sharper cheddar than I remember from Daiya's other products.  I think I like using this better than the shreds, actually!

I might be trying the same method with the Moz sticks later tonight and melting then pouring over pizza.  Or maybe I will just add the finely diced Moz to the actual pizza.  I haven't made up my mind yet tho.

All-in-all I'm pretty happy with the sticks!  I would buy them again if I saw them for the right price!  Now...if someone just did vegan string cheese and vegan cheese curds!

Questions of the day...have you tried any of these 3 products from Daiya yet?  What did you think? 

Did you hear about the Vegan Zombie's Vegan Sci-Fi A44 Movie?  Were you able to be a part of the Kickstarter?

VEGAN Smoked Gouda Beer Cheese, Recent Finds, & Power Bowl!

I'm going to hop around in this post but for good reason and that reason is this Vegan Smoked Gouda Beer Cheese I made literally just minutes ago!

But before I get to the recipe I have some 'explaining to do'.

For a week now I have been talking about our last trip over to Ohio and our visit to Mustard Seed Market, well, I have some new-to-me items to blog about along with some additional finds from my travels today!

First up...I FINALLY got my hands on Daiya's Smoked Gouda!  I have been searching for this stuff for about 8 months and I was able to find it at Mustard Seed Market in Solon, Ohio!  That's about 3 hours from my home so this will be a treat until I find it closer.  I have to say I'm a HUGE fan already!  It might be a good thing that I don't have access to this vegan cheese often or I would probably have to eat it daily.  I ate about half of it in small chunks as a side to my meals but I wanted to try to make something with it, too, so I ended up making a Gouda Beer Cheese - VEGAN!

Another item I found at Mustard Seed Market that I had not tried before was the So Delicious Coconut Milk Unsweetened Yogurt Alternative.  I know I am probably one of the last of our blogging buddies to try this but I'm still glad I was able to!  My first go-around with this wasn't a great one but that was totally operators error!  This time around it was a GREAT SUCCESS!  I also used this in my Vegan Smoked Gouda Beer Cheese!

So...here's the recipe...

10 T Light Beer
1 T Flour
1/2 Block Daiya Smoked Gouda, Shredded
2 T Plain, Unsweetened Vegan Yogurt
Yellow Mustard (Very Small Squirt)*
Smoked Paprika*

* = or to taste

If you would like this thicker just add a little bit more flour.

This was OUT OF THIS WORLD if I do say so myself!

Today we took another day trip - this time to the outskirts of Buffalo - more specifically West Seneca.  We went to a few music stores, a HUGE Wegmans, Feel Rite - which is a natural foods and vitamin type store, and a Halal Grocery Store.  We also went to Taste of India.  I asked them about their vegan options and after a long list I chose to go with their Chana Masala.  I brought the leftovers home for dinner.

While we were at Feel Rite I grabbed a Meyer Lemon Kevita.  I haven't seen this one where I live so I wanted to grab it.  I think I have a new favorite!  Then again, I'm partial to Meyer Lemons.

The other night I threw a bowl together for dinner.  This isn't the greatest photo but it was a tasty bowl.

I found at my local Shurfine Market a Wild Rice and Veggie Blend in the frozen foods section.  I found some flatbread that I toasted, and a half of avocado.  I also threw in the rest of the Pizza Hummus from the night before.

I still have LOTS to share over the last couple of weeks but I think I will stop there for today.

LightLife Bowls, Use-What-You-Have-Casserole, Vegan Thumb Print Cookies

Before I get into a few other finds from yesterday I forgot to mention this Southwestern Quinoa & Black Bean Bowl I found at Wegman's a few weeks ago.  It was fairly good.  I would probably buy it again when and if it's ever on sale.

One of the items I grabbed while at Mustard Seed Market yesterday were these Vegan Thumb Print Cookies!  They came in a 3-pack and were tasty.  They used a whole wheat based flour.  I also bought some Chocolate Cookies and will be sharing those with you in a couple of days!  I decided to treat myself because I don't often have vegan cookies.  One - because I don't bake, Two - because they aren't often found in my area.  And Three - I don't have that much of a sweet tooth that I crave them that often.

Here is a Casserole I threw together based on what I had on-hand.  I threw everything in a glass dish and baked it for about an hour at 375.  I used 2 C Kamut Pasta, 1 small can of tomato sauce, 1 C water, 1/4-1/2 small bag of frozen tater tots, Crushed Corn Chips to layer, 1/2 bag of frozen veggies (I used peas, carrots, corn, green beans), 1/2 can chickpeas, 1/2 Jar of salsa, and 2 handfuls of vegan shredded cheese (I used Daiya Pepper Jack).  Talk about COMFORT FOOD...this was FAB!  And I'm pretty proud of myself...I didn't even use any additional spices!

Worth A Re-Visit Thanks To Their New Vegan Smoked Gouda!

It's been a few years since I last purchased vegan cheese from Follow Your Heart.  Probably even before I went vegan, actually.  I have to say I wasn't fond of their vegan cheeses.  So that - in short - is why I haven't bought them again...UNTIL NOW...

Many of my blogging buddies who have been lucky enough to locate Daiya's Smoked Gouda and have blogged about had me craving it.  I thought maybe if anyone had it - it would be the brand new Whole Foods Market in Buffalo.  But, Nope!

So...I when I saw they had this smoked gouda from FYH I thought I would 'settle' for it.  Well, color me SURPRISED!  It's flippin' fabulous!  Now I want to go out and grab all of the other Follow Your Heart Sliced Vegan Cheeses I come across to see what I have been missing!

They must have really upped their game the last few years because I don't remember having a positive encounter before.  Glad I stepped outside my comfort zone and paid them a re-visit!

A funny addition to this story is that DH mistakenly opened MY VEGAN CHEESE and ate TWO SLICES out of it before I did!  When I went to use it for the first time and noticed the package was open I asked him about it and he said that he didn't know it was mine.  I totally believe him because he always poo-poo's my stuff.  I said to him...well, it must have been good if you didn't complain about it.  He said that he didn't notice...so...I'll chalk that up as a WIN in the vegan cheese category!

3 New-To-Me Products I've Enjoyed Lately

I still have LOTS to catch up on but wanted to hurry up and post about 3 products that I have enjoyed lately.

The first being this Organic Cranberry Spiced Apple Kombucha from Trader Joe's in Rochester.

It was pretty strong for a nice kick in the pants! BAM!

Next up...

So Delicious Cheddar Shreds!  Yes!  So Delicious!  I found them at the Whole Foods Market in Buffalo!  And OMG I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE it!  It smells more cheddary than anything else I have ever smelled vegan-cheese-wise.  There is more of a TANG to it than other vegan cheeses, too!  I do LOVE Daiya Shreds - but - dare I say I enjoy THESE shreds more?  Possibly.  I'm upset that I only bought 1 bag because I know I won't be able to find any anywhere near me.  I've been Googling this and any online announcements only date back to mid-August and Mid September so this HAS to be a NEW product!

And speaking of Daiya...OMG...I'm in LOVE with their new Alfredo Sauce!  This is so creamy and so rich and so YUM!  I found it at Wegman's in Lakewood a few months ago and just got rid of the box last week because I was going thru my kitchen and pitching it.  It's not unusual for me to keep a label or box of something I enjoy to remind myself to pick it up again the next time I see it but I will NOT be forgetting about this little gem anytime soon so I figured it was safe to part ways with the box!

QUESTION OF THE DAY...what are the last 3 new-to-you-productions that have been memorable for you?

Random Leftovers & Sauces & Wraps

I hope everyone had a nice weekend!  The weather here certainly was more pleasant than the earlier part of the week was.  I'm hoping the snow is done and over with for this winter and we can continue on with your adventure of SPRING!

My post today will be a little all over the place.  I've been eating some strange food combos but everything has turned out pretty YUMMY!  I want to be sure I am not wasting food and using what I have before buying much more.  So far this has been going well.  I'm on a bit of a wrap kick but more on that shortly.

First I need to share with you one of the new dips I created last night.  It's a vegan version of a pink sauce that I saw on Giada.  It was on at DH's Grandmothers yesterday and I knew I could do a vegan version of it fairly easily!

Here is what I did for the vegan version I made...

1 C Vegan Mayo
4 or 5 Mini Sweet Red Peppers (or 2 Medium)
1 T Minced Garlic
2 T Lemon Juice
Sprinkle of Smoked Paprika

It was pretty YUMMY but next time I will be adding more sweet red bell peppers and more garlic!  Because that's the way I roll!

The veggies pictured in the first photo were left over from DH's Grandmothers House...we had a belated birthday for both him and I as our birthdays are only 6 days apart.  I treated myself to a Daiya Pizza and So Delicious Mint Chocolate Ice Cream (both vegan, of course)

The other night I had Vegan Mac & Cheese.  You have probably seen a LOT of Vegan Cheese Sauces I have done here on my blog so I figured I would share yet another one with you!

This one is a Nut-Free Version

2 Mini Red Bell Peppers
1/4 C Lemon Juice
3/4 C Nutritional Yeast
3/4 C Tahini
2 T Minced Garlic
1/2 C Water
1 Squirt of Yellow Mustard
Black Himalayan Sea Salt to taste

Now on to the leftovers, eh!?

I had a very little bit of my Tater Tot Casserole that I froze.  I threw that on top of the stove along with some corn and some leftover tofu cubes.  I took a wrap and warmed it up with a slice of Daiya on it - enough to melt it.  Then I threw the rest of the warm ingredients on top of that and made a wrap!  But not before adding about a tablespoon of salsa on top!

This was super YUMMY and certainly a comfort food for the WIN!

 Like I said I have been on a wrap kick lately so here is another I did.  This is a Vegan Breakfast Wrap.  My main goal here was to use multi-colored baby potatoes I bought at Aldi's not too long ago but needed to start using SOON as well as finish up the Daiya Shreds I had on hand.  Mission Accomplished!  Let me tell you what is in this one, shall I?

Leftover Cubed Tofu
Leftover Corn
White & Purple Mini Potatoes
Daiya Shreds

I also threw in some Egg Trick Seasoning that I had leftover from when I did my Egg Trick Bagel last week!  This worked out VERY WELL!  It was tasty!

Eats, Chats, Books, & The Birds & The Bees!

Hello there!  So much to type and so little time - once again!  I will start of by saying that Paco's dental surgery went very well and she's back to normal.  He didn't have any issues with his ITP (Immune Issues) while re-cooping!  Thanks for all of the positive thoughts, prayers, vibes, and asking about him!  That means a lot!

Here's one of the more memorable thrown together meals I have had over the last few weeks!  It's a cheaters meal but super yummy!  I did boxed Daiya Mac & Cheese and added a package of frozen veggies and a little bit of almond milk then topped with sprinkles of nutmeg, smoked paprika, basil, etc.

Another thing I have enjoyed at home lately is vegan egg salad made from mainly avocado, spices, etc.  It certainly hit the spot!

This bread wasn't the best...not sure what kind it was but I highly doubt I will be getting it again.  I remember what the package looks like so I will avoid it.  What I have been craving for lately in the bread section is sprouted bread and I think I will have to make that happen soon!

One of my many attempted at vegan Mac & Cheese from scratch...I swear I do it a different way each time.

With this attempt it was very creamy!  The photo isn't that great but it was tasty!

Of course I threw some smoked paprika on top!  YUM!

I'm not sure why but I have been finishing off a lot of meals with nutmeg and/or smoked paprika as of late.

I'm sure by the title of this blog post you were thinking something different...but...I thought I would literally post about the BIRDS and the BEES today...at least the BEES...anyways!

A few weeks ago I took this photo on the fly on my iPhone...I can't remember a time that we have had bees and flowers this early in the year!

This past weekend it was near 70!!!!  Woot!

My birthday was on the 16th...I treated myself with this Daiya Cheesecake.  I will tell you that I am SET for a while on Vegan Cheesecake...I can't believe how rich and sweet this was!  I'm not sure to that!  It almost hurt my teeth! LOL

I will say I like the strawberry better than the plain.

I really like these vegan offerings but don't have them often and I think that is a good thing...on several levels!

This past weekend we traveled to the Buffalo area for a day trip and I was stoked to find 2 of the vegan cookbooks that were on my wishlist!

First up...Jason Wrobel!  This book is HUGE!

Then a blogging buddy of ours...Zsu Dever's Book as you can see in the next photo!  I can't wait to jump in!

And finally...a shout out to my buddy Opal!  I was able to chat with her on the phone today and it was so wonderful!

She's my oldest online buddy...it's been YEARS since I first came across her blog (and it was a few blogs ago) and a few blogs ago of mine, too!  It was great to talk to her over the phone...I bet it's been about 10 years or so since we 'met' online.  We chatted about family, the weekend, gardening, community involvement, etc...can't wait to chat with her again soon!  It was the highlight of my day!  YAY!